COVID-19 hospitalizations in Ontario drop below 800 for first time since December

Hospitalizations related to COVID-19 in Ontario dropped below 800 on Saturday for the first time since late December.

Of the 795 patients currently receiving care, 44 per cent were admitted due to the novel coronavirus while 56 per cent tested positive after the fact.

The last time COVID-19 hospitalizations in Ontario dropped below the 800 mark was on Dec. 28 when they reached 726.

Meanwhile, the number of COVID-19 ICU admissions in the province sank to 253 -- a number unseen since early January. Of those patients in the ICU, 80 per cent were admitted for COVID-19 and 20 per cent are being treated for other reasons.

The vaccination status of those in hospital with COVID-19 is unknown.

With 14,264 tests performed in the last 24 hours, Ontario’s COVID-19 positivity rate is 10.8 per cent, according to the Ministry of Health.

At least 1,930 confirmed cases of COVID-19 were reported across the province since Friday, though health officials have said that number is likely an underestimate due to limited access to testing.

The total number of lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 recorded in the province stands at 1,111,423.

Another 24 net new deaths were also reported Saturday, though 18 occurred in the last month and six occurred more than one month ago and are being reported today due to a data cleaning, the government said.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Ontario has seen 12,549 deaths related to COVID-19.

WHERE ARE THE NEW COVID-19 CASES?

Most of the cases reported by the province on Saturday were found in Toronto (368), Ottawa (127), Simcoe Muskoka (118), Peel Region (110), and York Region (96).

Other areas with relatively high COVID-19 case counts reported include Northwestern Health Unit (90), Durham Region (89), and Niagara Region (81).

UPDATE ON COVID-19 VACCINATIONS

As of Saturday, 92.7 per cent of Ontarians over the age of 12 have at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 90.6 per cent have two doses and are considered to be fully vaccinated.

Health Minister Christine Elliott said 31,773,683 doses of vaccine have been administered throughout the province’s vaccination campaign and 19,812 of those shots were given out on Friday.